The field of the disclosure relates generally to artificial lift systems for hydrocarbon producing wells and, more particularly, to a fluid intake for use in artificial lift systems for hydrocarbon producing wells.
Typical hydrocarbon producing wells include a wellbore for transporting materials that are withdrawn from a hydrocarbon formation. The materials pass from the formation into the wellbore and are channeled along the wellbore to the wellhead. These materials consist of one or more of gaseous, liquid, or solid phase substances.
Some wells utilize an artificial lift system to increase the production of materials from the wells. Artificial lifts systems typically include a pump that causes the materials to flow through the wellbore towards the wellhead. In at least some known wells, the flow of both liquid and gas phase materials through the wellbore results in unsteady flow regimes, i.e., the flow is not a constant stratified flow regime. As a result, gas is drawn towards and ingested by the pump, which causes a reduction in the expected operational lifetime of the pump. Additionally, the pump undergoes large load fluctuations when ingesting gas. More specifically, the pump requires a relatively large amount of power to lift large volumes of liquid during standard operation. When gas reaches the pump, the pump experiences a drop in power consumption because the pump is no longer doing as much work. Subsequently, when liquid enters the pump again, the power consumption increases significantly over a relatively short period of time. Such load fluctuations reduce pumping efficiency and further reduce the expected operational lifetime of the pump, the driver that operates the pump, and the power delivery system that supplies power to the pump.
At least some known pumps include intakes designed to draw material from a liquid portion of the flow through the wellbore. For example, a reverse shroud intake, which is used in vertical wellbores, includes an intake positioned within a cup-shaped shroud such that fluid is drawn down inside the shroud to reach the intake. A bottom orienting intake draws fluid from a bottom of the wellbore. However, to operate efficiently, known intakes require a stratified flow regime that does not normally occur in the flow of material through the wellbore. Additionally, some known intakes are relatively short, causing higher fluid velocities normal to a surface of the intake. The higher fluid velocities normal to the surface generate undesirable flow structures, such as vortices. Additionally, the higher fluid velocities normal to the surface result in relatively high pressure drops at the surface. The undesirable flow structures and high pressure drops cause gas to be drawn into the intakes and, as a result, cause the pump to operate less efficiently.